Thanks for the support, everyone! Sorry about my novel!
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Originally Posted by FlirtatiousBrat
Rachel I think at this point with him being 4, I'd just make sure to continue correcting his behavior and enforcing consequences. Sadly..my 11yr old sometimes empties salt shakers among other things..I know how frustrating that can be. Early intervention is always a plus but I still think four might be a tad young to fully diagnose ADD esp if he's not on the Autism spectrum. This is my personal opinion....I think boys mature on their own time so in essence he might just be a "typical 4yr old" I'm sure you will get tired of hearing that.
I would however once he's in a regular kindy/1st grade and if the teachers see a problem then I'd immediately have him evaluated. He just might be processing things a tad slower due to his other issues. Does he play with blocks, clay, etc to help his motor skills? I know my son esp when younger used to act out with dismantling anything he could get his hands on if he wasn't occupied..he got bored and that led to the behavior
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I agree with you about him being too young for a diagnosis. He also has some sleep issues, and it may turn out that a lot of his distractability is due to chronic sleep deprivation. But we're about to do his IEP and make decisions about his school for next year. He isn't going to be able to continue with 2 preschools (special needs and typical) because the schedule would be too much; it worked when we could do each 2 mornings a week, but it won't work for the pre-K year. His speech therapist feels strongly that he should be in the typical preschool; if the speech disorder is his main issue, then I agree. But I need to talk to his sped teacher. If she also sees signs that he might eventually get an ADHD/predominantly inattentive diagnosis, maybe we need to go with the sped preschool for next year.
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Originally Posted by Sharon Kay
Yet there are those hyperactive kids that you see and know that is what is going on...so it kind of misleads other people when they think their kid can't be ADHD because he/she doesn't run around the room or bounce off the walls. So when you start reading about ADHD ... just keep in mind what I said about the hyperactivity vs. impulsitivity. There is a lot out there on the internet to read about ADHD.
ADHD kids seem to be about 30% behind their peers in maturity and organization ... that's a big difference.
I wish I had known even a small part of what I know now ... when my son was 4 ... you are light years ahead of me in helping your child! I'm so glad!!
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Thanks, Sharon! I was a psych/education double major in college with an interest in special needs kids, so I know just enough to be dangerous, as the saying goes. I've been doing a little reading the past few days, and it's hard to say. Some of the predominantly inattentive criteria sound like him, some don't, and some he's too young for us to know. He isn't at all hyperactive, and he's not that impulsive. He doesn't think through consequences before he acts as well as most 4 year olds, but he's also not the type to run into the road or run his mouth. But even though he understands directions (his comprehension tests as above age level), I need to feed him 1 tiny step at a time and remind him over and over to keep him on task. Getting him to do anything he doesn't want to do, from participating in an activity at school to getting ready to leave the house, is an exercise in frustration. He can spend hours hyperfocused on an alphabet activity or the computer, but only a couple of minutes on task for things that parents or teachers want him to do. I know he's young and I'm not describing it all that well, but I've spent enough time around preschoolers and in preschool classrooms to recognize that there's some significant immaturity. It may not turn out to be ADHD, but I'm starting to feel like it's not something he's going to grow out of if we just give him time.